The Roman feast of Saturnalia 农神节的盛宴

Our history and our culture have come about because a lot of ordinary people have done some really terrible jobs. And our traditional Christmas is no exception. However dreadful it's been, having to do all that shopping, however ghastly been, stuck with your in-laws and your relatives' children. You can put your feet up, and gloat. 'Cause there is loads of people who've had far worse Christmases than you will ever have. Stand by to find out.

About the gross inside job behind the Christmas roast.
(Disgusting, it's strangely interesting.)
How slimy seaweed made Jane Austin's table festive¹ and why panto relied on dangerous chemistry.
Welcome to the Worst Christmas Jobs in History.

This could be the worst Christmas job. Shepherds are biding² in their fields, watching their flocks by night, when, lo, an angel appears, and they'll go off and see the baby Jesus. It is the most famous part of the Christmas Nativity story. But funny enough, it proves that Christmas didn't happen in December, because December is the rainy month in Judea, and all the flocks are taken in for the night. So, if the shepherds were good Jewish boys, they would've all been tucked up sleeping in bed, listening to the Romans celebrating their midwinter feast.

The Roman feast of Saturnalia lasted from the middle to the end of December. They gave each other presents, they stuffed down food, they drank till they were sick, and they nursed monumental hangovers. Saturnalia was so popular that when Christians³ tried to get people celebrating Jesus's birth in March or April, it never caught on. That's why they tag their religious feast onto this older pagan boozer.

So, next time when you are feasting at a Christmas party, when someone starts bleating⁴ on about this not being the real spirit of Christmas, tell them they are wrong. Shoveling down food or guzzling⁵ booze is the original spirit of Christmas.

"This one for me?"
"Yes."
"Cheers."

"Was it the Romans who actually invented binge drinking then?"
"They drink an awful lot at the Saturnalia. It's the time they're very luxurious⁶. They eat a lot and then they drink a lot. But also in the first century A.D, they developed drinking on empty stomach for the first time."
"Could they hold the liquor?"
"No, and we have plenty of, plenty of information about people being sick, people throwing wine cups at parties and also, in wall painting, we find images of people throwing up, ur, aided by slaves often."

And it's throwing up the central to our first worst job, which used to take place in the Roman dining-room. And by an eerie⁷ coincidence we actually happen to have a Roman dinning-room right next door. Welcome to the world of the Puke Collector. Come with me.

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ghastly adv.可怖地
bide⁸ v. 居住，滞留
Nativity n. (the Nativity) 基督降生
boozer n. 酒店
booze n. 酒，酒宴
guzzle⁹ v. 狂饮，暴食，喝酒花掉（钱）

1 festive   

adj.欢宴的，节日的

参考例句：

• It was Christmas and everyone was in festive mood.当时是圣诞节，每个人都沉浸在节日的欢乐中。
• We all wore festive costumes to the ball.我们都穿着节日的盛装前去参加舞会。

2 biding   

v.等待，停留( bide的现在分词 )；居住；（过去式用bided）等待；面临

参考例句：

• He was biding his time. 他正在等待时机。 来自辞典例句
• Applications:used in carbide alloy, diamond tools, biding admixture, high-temperature alloy, rechargeable cell. 用作硬质合金，磁性材料，金刚石工具，高温合金，可充电池等。 来自互联网

3 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。

4 bleating   

v.（羊，小牛）叫( bleat的现在分词 )；哭诉；发出羊叫似的声音；轻声诉说

参考例句：

• I don't like people who go around bleating out things like that. 我不喜欢跑来跑去讲那种蠢话的人。 来自辞典例句
• He heard the tinny phonograph bleating as he walked in. 他步入室内时听到那架蹩脚的留声机在呜咽。 来自辞典例句

5 guzzling   

v.狂吃暴饮，大吃大喝( guzzle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The kids seem to be guzzling soft drinks all day. 孩子们似乎整天都在猛喝汽水。
• He's been guzzling beer all evening. 整个晚上他都在狂饮啤酒。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 luxurious   

adj.精美而昂贵的；豪华的

参考例句：

• This is a luxurious car complete with air conditioning and telephone.这是一辆附有空调设备和电话的豪华轿车。
• The rich man lives in luxurious surroundings.这位富人生活在奢侈的环境中。

7 eerie   

adj.怪诞的；奇异的；可怕的；胆怯的

参考例句：

• It's eerie to walk through a dark wood at night.夜晚在漆黑的森林中行走很是恐怖。
• I walked down the eerie dark path.我走在那条漆黑恐怖的小路上。

8 bide   

v.忍耐；等候；住

参考例句：

• We'll have to bide our time until the rain stops.我们必须等到雨停。
• Bide here for a while. 请在这儿等一会儿。

9 guzzle   

v.狂饮，暴食

参考例句：

• Melissa had guzzled gin and tonics like they were lemonade.梅利莎像喝柠檬汽水一样大口地喝着加奎宁水的杜松子酒。
• Pigs guzzle their food.猪总是狼吞虎咽地吃东西。